H.D.: The Fusion of Classicism and Modernity
With foundations rooted deeply in an appreciation for and understanding of classicism, H.D. fused ancient Grecian literature, thinking and mythology with modernistic feminism, bisexuality and psychoanalysis to establish for herself a prominent voice among her contemporaries. Born Hilda Doolittle in 1886 to Helen and Charles Doolittle, her education was fostered by the intellectual curiosity of her parents (an artist and an astronomer, respectively) and the proximity of The University of Pennsylvania. Closely associated with poet Ezra Pound, she spent much of her adult and professional life surrounded by literary contemporaries. Doolittle was a woman whose work was not limited to a single interest but instead expanded to envelop several of the most outstanding facets of modernism: the exploration of women within a literary movement, the exploration of homosexuality and the exploration of self through psychoanalysis.
H.D.’s major contribution to modernism is most often recognized as her use of poetic imagery. After only two years at Bryn Mawr, H.D. moved to England, where much of her poetry was written. Pound, a close friend and twice-fiancée not only facilitated her acceptance into the literary circles of expatriate American writers, but also her entrance into the literary world. Affixing the signature "H.D., Imagiste," Pound submitted H.D.’s early verses to Harriet Monroe’s Poetry Magazine, which were accepted and published (Scott). Her poetry remains at the forefront of the imagist branch of modernism, a division whose writers dedicate themselves to the direct treatment of the subject, the prohibition of any word that not essential to the presentati...
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Works Cited
“A Brief Biography Of H.D.” < http://www.imagists.org/hd/bio.html>
Bryan, Marsha. “Modern American Poetry.”
Doolittle, Hilda. Asphodel. Editor: Spoo, Robert. Durham; Duke University Press, 1992.
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Doolittle, Hilda. Collected Poems 1912-1944: Martz, Louis L. New York; New
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“H.D. Poetry Exhibit” <http://www.poets.org/poets/poets.cfm?prmID=238>
Levertov, Denise. ”H.D.: An Appreciation” Modern Critical Views H.D.: Bloom,
Harold. New York; Chelsea House Publishers.
Scott, Bonnie Kime. “About H.D.’s Life and Career” Bryan, Marsha. “Modern American
“Poetry.” <http://www.english.uiuc.edu/maps/poets/g_l/hd/life.htm>
...sitive depiction of their sexual relationship. For Mina, however, renunciation of Dracula's evil must include the renunciation of her own physical needs and desires. The roles played by social mores and conceptions of gender and sexuality are, in the end, more than incidental. Indeed, the difference between Victorian England and 1990s America causes the subtle -- but significant -- valuation of the connections between good and evil and women and sexuality in two in many ways similar texts.
Haney-Peritz, Janice. "Monumental feminism and literature's ancestral house: Another look at The Yellow Wallpaper". Women's Studies. 12:2 (1986): 113-128.
The fact that Wheatley’s poetry was read in her time is another impressive factor. She was black and a female, yet she received a decent amount of readership. In addition, she was respected for her art. However, the controversy and power existed not only within the time period Wheatley lived in, but they also existed within the content of her poetry.
Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula, is a highly controversial work of fiction that is still being read for the first time today. Dracula touches many different categories including; sci-fi horror to 1800’s English romance literature. This is the main reason why the novel Dracula can be analyzed in many different ways using many different literary theories. The theory which stuck out most to me while reading this novel was the Feminist Theory. The Feminist Theory cannot be used to analyze Dracula as a whole novel, but it can be used in order to analyze the different female characters throughout the book. Therefore, Bram Stoker’s Dracula can be analyzed through the feminist theory by focusing on the characters Mina Harker, Lucy Westenra, and the three brides of Dracula.
Marianne Moore ranked with Emily Dickinson among America’s finest woman poets. Moore crafted her poems superbly. She generally used poetic forms in which the controlling element is the number and arrangement of syllables rather than c...
The Natural Support of African Americans in poverty is to lower food bills in families by cooking instead of buying fast foods. The culture of poverty “is perceived to be a worldview and ethos contributing to poor people staying in poverty.” (Rogers, 131) it is seen as people who are in poverty are the connection of their offspring who seem to also have a difficult time to move up higher in society. “Children learn from their parents that laziness is a way of life, as is receiving food stamps every month; children never gain the motivation to work their way...
...guages. Her contribution to American Literature can be shown through her pure emotion and connections in her writing.
The rate of death due to prescription drug abuse in the U.S. has escalated 313 percent over the past decade. According to the Congressional Quarterly Transcription’s article "Rep. Joe Pitt Holds a Hearing on Prescription Drug Abuse," opioid prescription drugs were involved in 16,650 overdose-caused deaths in 2010, accounting for more deaths than from overdoses of heroin and cocaine. Prescribed drugs or painkillers sometimes "condemn a patient to lifelong addiction," according to Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This problem not only affects the lives of those who overdose but it affects the communities as well due to the convenience of being able to find these items in drug stores and such. Not to mention the fact that the doctors who prescribe these opioids often tend to misuse them as well. Abusing these prescribed drugs can “destroy dreams and abort great destinies," and end the possibility of the abuser to have a positive impact in the community.
Gregor Samsa awakes one morning to discover that he has been transformed into a repugnant vermin. One may never know what initiated this makeover, but the simple truth is that Gregor is now a bug, and everyone must learn to live and move on in this strenuous situation. In Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, the characters that interact with Gregor, including his mother, his father, and his sister Grete, must come to terms with his unfortunate metamorphosis, and each does so by reacting in a unique way. Gregor’s family members are constantly strained by this unusual event, and all three of them are pressed to their breaking point.
In Dracula, Bram Stoker portrays a clear battle between the “traditional woman” of the time and the “new woman.”. Stoker uses the contrasting characters of Lucy Westenra and Mina Murray to depict this evolution in women and, also, to paint an image of the reaction to this advance, expressed by both men and women.
The late nineteenth century Irish novelist, Bram Stoker is most famous for creating Dracula, one of the most popular and well-known vampire stories ever written. Dracula is a gothic, “horror novel about a vampire named Count Dracula who is looking to move from his native country of Transylvania to England” (Shmoop Editorial Team). Unbeknownst of Dracula’s plans, Jonathan Harker, a young English lawyer, traveled to Castle Dracula to help the count with his plans and talk to him about all his options. At first Jonathan was surprised by the Count’s knowledge, politeness, and overall hospitality. However, the longer Jonathan remained in the castle the more uneasy and suspicious he became as he began to realize just how strange and different Dracula was. As the story unfolded, Jonathan realized he is not just a guest, but a prisoner as well. The horror in the novel not only focuses on the “vampiric nature” (Soyokaze), but also on the fear and threat of female sexual expression and aggression in such a conservative Victorian society.
Allen, Donald, ed. The New American Poetry 1945-1960. Berkely, CA.: U. of California P., 1999.
Conclusively, while Bram Stokers novel Dracula is seen as a gothic and horror story, I argue that it is a novel that seeks to address female sexuality directly. Seen through numerous passages, Stoker confronts and battles the views between sexuality during the Victorian era though his genius of characterization of characters present within the novel. As it seems highly intentional to me, I respect the way in which he criticizes and critiques upon female sexuality by bringing into light new ideas regarding female desires. When contrasting his text upon today’s culture, the differences to how one perceived the vampire has changed significantly.
Poems, Poets, Poetry: An Introduction and Anthology. 3rd ed. Ed. Helen Vendler. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s,
Hughes Gertrude Reif. (Spring 1986). Subverting the Cult of Domesticity: Emily Dickinson’s Critique of Woman’s Work. Legacy. Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 17-2